I wanted to do something personal, since I haven't done any personal art like this for months. For inspiration I thought about how I would like to perceive my soul. This is my fursona Autumn Fire in her ethereal state. I also used this to test the new vellum surface paper I have. It is great to blend watercolour and coloured pencil together because the finish is very satin-like.

This took a few days. 9" by 12" Vellum Surface paper. Watercolours, coloured pencil, acrylic paint and black 0.2mm micron pen for details. This was ambitious for me because that background, though simple, was HARD and I still am not happy with how it turned out

I have to say that I looove the sky on this. I personally have never tried to mix pencil and watercolor but I like the result on your picture. The overall flow is very nice as well. I also envy the angel wings I can never draw them that pretty lol. Beautiful work I think describes this best.

Wow, this is a really good picture. I like how you made the clouds/sky. To me it looks like is goes well with the background and the character. Sometimes a simple background can go a long way. I also love how you did the wings. Great job!

This is just amazing. I think it's the best artwork you've ever made. From the moment I first saw this, I knew I had to fav. The color scheme and scenery remind me of another of my favorites of your work, Lonely Amur Leopard, but it's very obvious that you have improved a lot as an artist since then. The style and texture of the scenery and character are not simply better in their own right. They're also more harmonious with one another, keeping the focus on the character without losing her against the background or making her stick out too much.

Even if the background is not completely to your liking, I think it came out amazing. The concept of just "mountain and sky" may be simple, but the light scheme and detail you went for is not, and it's extremely admirable that you took on such a challenge, not to mention pulling it off so beautifully. I just love the beautiful, billowing clouds and the beams of light. I think the sky has the same chilly-bright, heavenly fantasy feel that Lonely Amur Leopard had, but it has benefited enormously from your current level of skill. "Ethereal" is the perfect word for it. I really do feel like I'm looking at a soul when I view this.

The texture and detail on the feathers is amazing, but my favorite thing about the figure is the way you used the black pen to enhance certain details. The way you've darkened the outlines only on certain sides of certain parts of the body makes Autumn Fire look more three-dimensional and more a part of the background because not every part of her is equally distinct against the background lighting. I'm not sure I'm explaining it well, but the resulting effect is divine. Very professional.

I can't emphasize enough how awesome of a job you did on this piece. You made something to be proud of! Thanks for sharing it with those of us on DA. I look forward to seeing more of your inspiring work in the future.

Oh my goodness. Thank you very much for your kind words. I find if I pick ideas that I find challenging and have some emotion attached to them intrigue me enough to strive to better my self. I am glad to hear that this piece has portrayed how I felt doing it. What you have said means a lot to me because I know you have high standards for viewing art.

Thank you. The paper is a thick cardstock-like paper called Vellum Surface Paper. It has an incredibly smooth finishe. This is a graphite sketch then filled in with watercolour paint, then coloured pencil details, then acrylic paint details finished off with small details with a black micron pen.